January 7, 2021 Picks:
College Basketball:
#17 Oregon at Colorado (-2) - Well we took one on the chin with our College Basketball picks yesterday, but the beauty is today is a brand new day. Colorado is a two point favorite against the 17th ranked Ducks, despite their best win being a 72-62 win over USC. Oregon is coming off a 73-56 win against Stanford, and they look to stay undefeated in conference play. They will be after they beat the Buffalos in Boulder. Pick: Oregon 76 Colorado 70
#6 Iowa (-6) at Maryland - For this game it will depend on which Maryland team will show up. Will it be the one that beat Wisconsin earlier this year or the one that lost to Indiana on Monday. Our bet is the former. Pick: Iowa 84 Maryland 72
Indiana at #8 Wisconsin (-8) - Speaking of Wisconsin and Indiana, these two teams also match up in Madison today. Minus that blip against Maryland, Wisconsin has been very solid in Big Ten play this season. Indiana needed overtime to beat Penn State. The Badgers will come out on top and cover in this one. Pick: Wisconsin 78 Indiana 68
BYU at #1 Gonzaga (-17) - In 2017 Gonzaga was undefeated heading into the season finale against BYU. The Cougars got the win. In 2020 Gonzaga was the #1 team in the country when they played BYU. The Cougars got the win. The Cougars won’t get the win here but they will cover this spread. Pick: Gonzaga 93 BYU 82
#12 Illinois (-7) at Northwestern - Northwestern tumbled from the rankings last week after losses to Iowa and Michigan. This is still a talented team and Illinois hasn’t looked as good as everyone thought. The Wildcats spring the upset on the Fighting Illini here, and get back in the rankings next week. Pick: Northwestern 79 Illinois 75
NBA:
Philadelphia (-2) at Brooklyn - Kevin Durant is still out for the Nets, who face the Conference Leading 76ers. Kyrie Irving was able to lead Brooklyn to a big win over Utah last time out, but this is a different animal. Irving will get his, but the supporting cast won’t be enough as Philadelphia continues to roll. Pick: Philadelphia 127 Brooklyn 121
Cleveland (-4) at Memphis - Memphis is in last place in the Western Conference. A year after overachieving and just missing out on the playoffs, the Grizzlies have come back to earth this year. With Ja Morant still out, the onus is on Dillon Brooks and Ty Jones to lead this team. Against most teams that won’t be enough. Against the Cavaliers it will be. Pick: Memphis 113 Cleveland 105
Dallas at Denver (-3) - It is surprising to me that the Nuggets are favored here. The Mavericks are coming off a 113-100 win against the Rockets and have a healthy Luca Doncic. Nikola Jokic has been playing out of his mind for Denver, but it won’t be enough here as the Mavericks get the win. Pick: Dallas 125 Denver 119
San Antonio at Los Angeles Lakers (-8.5) - These two teams have already played twice this season, with the Lakers winning both contests. Both Lebron James and Anthony Davis are questionable for this game, so even if they do play how effective will they be? We are going to ride with the Spurs in this one, not just to cover but to win. Pick: San Antonio 109 Los Angeles Lakers 104
Minnesota at Portland (-10) -The Timberwolves have been bad this year, but this is way too many points to be getting. The Blazers haven’t really lit the world on fire to start the season either. This will be a close win for Portland. Pick: Portland 117 Minnesota 114
Happy picking everyone!